Band Camp
by Neola
Summary: You want a band camp fic?! You want romance?! Well click, silly! This is about a girl secretly swooning over a friend...but there's much more to it than just that. Only problems is that you must R & R to find out.
1. Prolouge

Prologue

            Well, I won't brag or anything *smirks* but the Woodward High School Marching Band is kick-ass.  Small bands are nice, medium bands are pretty damn good, and large bands can go either way – they can suck, or, like our band, the can end up looking like an army of marchers.  Capping out at just under 400 (including the guard) we're pretty damn big if I might say.

            Well, I've never been good at introductions but what the hell…hi - I'm Liz.  And just to go ahead and get it all out, I'm a rising Senior, flute player _and_ flute section leader.  Power is sweet – very sweet.  With such a large band, you can imagine that each section is a wee bit bigger.  So, naturally, I've got 32 flute players to look out for.  And I kid you not.  We're right up there with the clarinets, however, they cap out at 36.  So yeah, band camp is, and always has been, extreme hell.

            The theme, or so we were told at the end of the previous year, was from the movie, _Gladiator_.  I smile at the thought of ending my high school career with a big bang when it comes to the band.  Veeery nice.  Carter High School – eat your heart out.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

            It's a quarter to 6 - in the morning - as I pull into the high school's parking lot, my little '98 Sunbird's trunk packed with my belongings for a week-long band camp over at the University of Georgia (they were gracious enough to host us - but a hefty fee came along with the offer).  I throw the car in park, roll my windows up, and start to dismantle the CD player's faceplate to put into the glove compartment…call me extra cautious - but I love my car.  I hop and, and I barely have enough time to shut the door and practically jump on top of the car before being run over by a giant Explorer playing very loud, distorted music.  Growling, I walk over the driver's door and start pounding on the window. The tinted glass rolls down with a small electric hum as a perky brunette smiles at me.

            "Well damn, Stace!  We haven't even gotten on the bus and already you want to kill me?!  I'm sorry, but you are NOT getting the window seat." I spit out with a grin on my face.

            "Yeah, I know.  If only I was about 3 seconds faster…" she smirks.  That would be the ever so annoying yet lovable Stacey - also a senior, and quite possibly the only person that understands me - well, female anyway.  I snort and walk back over to my car, and proceed to start kicking and screaming at the trunk that refuses to obey me and open up.  But, after a few hard smacks, it relents to its master…haha!  I look inside the trunk and then over to the growing crowd waiting for the busses to pull up and sigh.  That's a long walk.

            "Hon," Stacey starts, peering into my trunk cautiously, "we're only going to be gone for a week - not a year."

            "Yeah, I know, but amidst the zombie like state I was in this morning - you know, last minute packing - I decided to bring my entire room.  What I really need is Mary Poppin's never-ending bag…" I reply, hauling out the massive suitcase that's about as big as I am.  Stacey smiles and opens her trunk, and pulls out a suitcase similar to mine, but three sizes smaller.  I roll my eyes as I sling the "official marching band duffel bag" over my shoulder and shut the trunk.  Checking to make sure all doors are locked and the sunroof is shut and nothing is turned on by some mysterious reason, I join Stacey as we start our trek over to the crowd that has grown even bigger.  Thank goodness for retractable handles on these suitcases.

            "Ya know, I feel like those little kids going to elementary school." I joke.

            "How so?"

            "Haven't you seen them?  Their 'book bags' are little suitcases with handles!!" I laugh.  What is the world coming to?  I remember when I had to walk 3 miles in snow three feet deep, uphill…oh wait - that's what my mom had to "do". Heh.

            "What bus are we on again?" Stacey asked.

            "Where would you be without me?  Bus 3." I sighed.  She smiled.

            "Yeah!  Go seniors!!"  I rolled my eyes at her enthusiasm.  See, I'm quite happy I'm a senior…but as for the spirit, well, I graciously handed that all over to Stace.  We have six busses transporting us everywhere - six, Greyhound buses.  Five were for the band, and the last one for the guard.  Funny how the band and the guard never really inter-mingled.  We appreciated each other, and respected each other…but as for friendships?  There were few if any.

            There were many new faces I had yet to meet, and of the rookies, I knew none.  I'm sure I passed many girls - and possibly guys - that would soon be under my control - for I would be their ruler!!  Er, sorry…another power trip.  The buses were supposed to be here at 5:30 so everyone could load and board and we could be on our way across two states by 6.  However, the buses were not anywhere to be seen.  I grinned.  Fashionably late.

            "Hey, think we'll have any buses that break down again like our freshman year?" Chris asked as we finally pulled our suitcases to a halt and kicked them for good measure.

            "With our luck, yes." I snorted.  The rounds of greetings went around as everyone whined and complained about the ungodly hour it was and the nerve that they should be anywhere but snuggled in their beds with their various secret security blankets and dolls and whatnots.  These were my friends - my posse.  Eventually around 6:15, the busses finally pulled in, and it took another 15 minutes to load everything and get on the bus.  Of course, there were the classic "I LEFT MY INSTRUMENT!!!" and "WHERE'S MY PILLOW?!" and other predicable situations which only put us even more behind schedule.  However, at precisely 7:07 AM, we pulled out after doing a head count.

            Bus 3, the senior bus with a few chosen juniors, was the happening bus…but not at the moment.  Everyone was still getting settled, chatting and causing general havoc for the bus driver and the chaperones.  Like every bus, there was a seating system: the jokers and annoyers were in the back, being quite unruly.  The suck-ups and captains and drum majors and first chairs of each section were in the front.  The rest of us were scattered throughout the middle.  Around me, however, were all of my close friends.  Stace, of course, was seated next to me.  Chris and Alex were in front of us; Jen and Ashley were to our left, leaving Mike and Kenny behind us.  Of course, this seating arrangement would last all of 2 hours before we'd play musical chairs for the sheer fun of it.

            Finally settling in, in a wave like motion, all CD players were brought out, and various earphones were attached to the head.  The idiots in the back, however, ignored this and kept right on with their loud jabbering. I had decided to put Enya in so I could calm myself into a nap before I turned into this heinous monster.  My thoughts wandered to various corners of my mind - including my family, my kittens, the camp, and…well…er…Alex.  Alright, alright!  So I have a thing for Alex.  No one knows - not even Stacey.  It's quite childish - he's got a girlfriend anyway.  It doesn't matter anyway…he and I are like brother and sister.  We've known each other for the least amount of time, but we grew considerably close.  The voices inside my head started to jabber to each other, talking about random things including how aerodynamic pigs were as I drifted off into a slumber…


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I woke up at one point during the early morning to the sun roasting my face.  Groaning, I pulled down the massive shade and looked around.  Aside form a couple of the annoyers in the back talking – surprisingly enough – in a hushed whisper, everyone was asleep…and to my utter delight, there were no snores to be heard.  My CD had long since stopped playing, so I switched CDs making sure not to wake Stace.  Glancing at my cell phone, which I had strategically positioned in the pocket that was on the back of the seat in front of me, I realized that it was only 9:45.  This sucks, I wanted to go back to sleep.

However, much to my luck (not), I couldn't fall back asleep.  I was cranky, groggy, and sleepy…not in the best of moods.  Dave Mathews was playing in my head, and my eyes lazily wandered over to the shaggy sandy blonde hair that was peeping inbetween the two seats in front of me.  Ahh, Alex.  Such a cutie.  Too bad he went for the outgoing girls who loved to show off their curves.  Looking down at my pj's – which consisted of a tank top and giant flannel pants with little pumpkins smiling at me – I realized just how much I was not his type.  Just the mere thought of wearing something sparkling, tight, and revealing made me cringe.  Sulking, I repositioned myself, propping my pillow up against the shade and attempted to fall back asleep.  Of course, I was bundled up in a blanket my mother and I had so cleverly "borrowed" from Delta…which made me think: if the bus drivers need the temperature to be 50 below, just to stay awake, what business do they have driving a giant chunk of metal with a bunch of teens loaded?  Snuggling down deeper, as if to protect myself from said stupidity, I fell back into a restless sleep, Dave's sweet voice lulling my dreams back.

I've always prided myself with my fierce independent streak – and my natural yearning to be a leader.  Given those circumstances, any sane person would be wondering what I was doing in a marching band.  However, given my title – section leader and lieutenant, I fit in quite nicely.  But at the same time, I do have to answer to higher power, which means I get told what to do, which means I'm not a happy camper because I like being told what to do just about as much as I like having a root canal.  With all that said, I HATE being woken up when I was perfectly happy dreaming about Neo from the Matrix…

"Leave me alone!  Can't you see I'm sleeping?  Generally, according to current societal standards, you don't wake someone when they look peacefully asleep – which I was!" I snarled to no one in particular.  The bus had suddenly lurched to a stop, leaving me to wonder if our driver really had given into temptation and fell asleep.  Alas, no one was screaming so after a second or two, I realized we were at a rest stop.  Looking in the direction that someone shook me, I was greeted by a friendly – and most gorgeous – pair of blue eyes.  Still half asleep, I stared into the eyes, trying to gain my bearings…Who is this I'm looking at?  Where am I?  And for Christ's sake, WHY did someone wake me?!

"Look sleepy-head, it's noon, you were drooling all over yourself, we're at a rest stop, and quite frankly, I'd take any opportunity to stretch my legs AND use any bathroom other than the one located in the back of the bus.  Plus, you looked so darn cute and peaceful, I just had to annoy you!" Alex beamed at me.  He was leaning over the back of his seat – the one directly in front of me – grinning like a mad man with tousled hair that only added to the effect.  Zoning in on the drool factor, and the sudden realization that he had seen me drool, I shot up as my hand flew to my mouth.  Indeed, the side of my mouth was moist.  My head screamed out in humiliation, but I could not let this man know that he had caught me in such a position.  Instead, I wiped my mouth and shrugged as if it were nothing new.  He pouted for a moment, upset that I hadn't started something, but then quickly regained his comical composure when I kicked his seat for the hell of it, causing him to fly backwards into Chris.  

"What the fu…dude!  Get off!" Chris yelled.  Apparently, someone else was cranky as well.  I made a mental note to steer clear of Chris for a while.  Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I suddenly remember Stace, looked to my left, and was greeted with an empty seat.

"Where's Stace?" I asked out loud, throwing the blanket off of me and rubbing my sore neck.

"Heh.  You should've seen her.  She was the first one off the bus and into the restroom!" Ashley laughed from my left.  Everything was slowly coming together like a slow movie: where I was, what I was doing, why I wasn't snug in my bed, who these people were…

I stumbled off the bus with the remaining few stragglers only to into a massive mob.  Still half asleep, purse in hand, I grabbed Alex's shirt and used him to lead me to the snack machines – a place I knew he'd make a beeline for.  As we waited in a line that was about 8 million miles long (hey, like I said, I was still half in Neo World), Alex and I made chit chat.

"You sleep well?" I asked him, looking him over casually.

"Eh, I guess.  Chris was next to me, leaning on my for who knows what reasons…so I couldn't really move.  Looks like you slept well!" he grinned.  Damn, can I take Chris's spot? 

"Yeah, I guess.  After all, when you dream about Keanu Reeves, there's going to be a little droolage." I laughed, smiling at the mental image of Reeves shirtless.  

"Please, please, don't go there.  I'd like to buy food and eat it, not throw it up." He groaned. I punched his shoulder, making him laugh, which only angered me, which made him laugh even more.  I grumbled, slapping him, pouting, sulking.

"Dude, stop that!"

"No way, I love it when you pout!" he grinned. 

"Listen buddy, don't make me steal your food." I threatened.  His eyes narrowed to tiny slits, challenging me.

"Oh, so you wanna fight, eh?" he replied, mocking a member of the Mafia.  We agreed to set the duel to a date where there weren't any chaperones nearby.  The rest of the time we were off the bus was spent basking in the sun atop a picnic table, my posse and I just chilling.  At one point, Alex left to round up his girlfriend, Allison, but soon came back with her in tote.  I have nothing against the little clarinet player.  She's sweet, a wee bit on the slutty side, but I chalk that up to the fact that she's dating a senior and has to make an impression upon her sophomore friends.  However, she's dating the one guy I actually like – aside from Keanu – and that alone irks me.


End file.
